Service Visit Disaster

[Celledral]

Need some advice here.

I've had my model S for 8 months and just returned from my 4th visit. The last 3 times have been trying to get the same issues resolved and it's getting worse and worse. I've had the rear seat rattle problem diagnosed and "fixed" only to have it come back in days or even hours after picking up my car. I've had the "Safety restraint fault" warning and this was my third time bringing it in for service. The most annoying issues was the font clicking noise when turning at a slow speed (reverse or forward).

I was assured from a tech they knew what the problem was and how to fix it, only to get the car back stating that they could not replicate the noise and instead left it alone. 3 times I had a tech go with me on a test drive to confirm my suspicions only to have them not do anything afterwards. I even sent them invoices from TSMC users that had the same problem and how to fix it, but was immediately disregarded as "every car is different". I was shocked as I'm sure all Model S exhibiting the same problems most likely have the same fix.

Here's where It gets worse. After each visit, my white seats were stained beyond normal wear and it would take me 25-40mins to prep and clean up all their stains. Worse of all this last visit where I was assured all my issues would be taken care of, were not, but I'm certain the "mechanics" took my car out for a joy ride. About 20-30 miles or so was added to the odometer when the car was in their custody, but the part that validated my suspicion was my drive mode was changed from "sport" to "insane". I left it there purposely in case they were to take it out for a test drive the acceleration would not be a factor.

So just venting and hoping to get some type of advice on what to do next as my main issues are still alive and more powerful than a marvel villain. Thanks for reading.


Model S 2022 LR
Pomona Service Center, CA
Rear Seat rattles, Front suspension clicking

Just a few photos, as I'm sure you get the point.

 

[Wol747]

That's terrible. Commiserations.
Too late for you, but my S is in the body shop at the moment (don't ask...) and I can see from my phone that the trunk is open, the street address and the miles remaining in the battery.
Next visit (!) worth keeping an eye on the app.

 

[Droschke]

Yes, this is utterly unacceptable. Just curious, what's that $225 invoice for?

 

[Celledral]

That's terrible. Commiserations.
Too late for you, but my S is in the body shop at the moment (don't ask...) and I can see from my phone that the trunk is open, the street address and the miles remaining in the battery.
Next visit (!) worth keeping an eye on the app.

I think I'm just gonna go with a third party bodyshop next time.

 

[Celledral]

Yes, this is utterly unacceptable. Just curious, what's that $225 invoice for?

This was their "estimate", even though it's under warranty. Once the final invoice is ready, it should be $0, which is exactly how much effort they put in.

 

[uscbucsfan]

Rear seat rattle can be fixed with wrapping some electrical tape around the metal bar that the seat latches on to. Sucks that you need to do that on a 100K car, but for me and many others, it completely fixed the issue for good.

 

[Celledral]

Rear seat rattle can be fixed with wrapping some electrical tape around the metal bar that the seat latches on to. Sucks that you need to do that on a 100K car, but for me and many others, it completely fixed the issue for good.

I had done that with PPF but that would only last about a week before the metal would eat into it.

 

[vcor]

My solution for the rear seat rattle is to stuff a small block of stiff foam - about 2" x 1" x 1" in the metal U of the rear seat. You may need to tweak the thickness depending on how stiff the foam is. It should be thick enough to push the seat forward a bit, but still, allow it to latch. It should be wide enough to hold itself in place when folding the seat down. It's never rattled after this fix. It avoids the gooey mess of electrical tape.

 

[Droschke]

My solution for the rear seat rattle is to stuff a small block of stiff foam - about 2" x 1" x 1" in the metal U of the rear seat. You may need to tweak the thickness depending on how stiff the foam is. It should be thick enough to push the seat forward a bit, but still, allow it to latch. It should be wide enough to hold itself in place when folding the seat down. It's never rattled after this fix. It avoids the gooey mess of electrical tape.

Is this an issue with the newer cars? My car seats have been rattle free in 7.5 years of ownership.

Just curious. where is this metal U of the rear seat and how to access it?

 

[SoCal Buzz]

Is this an issue with the newer cars? My car seats have been rattle free in 7.5 years of ownership.

Just curious. where is this metal U of the rear seat and how to access it?

Yes, it's only the 2021+ that have electronic latches to fold down rear seats. I believe the u-bolts are in same location as pre-refresh, mounted on each side about shoulder height.

 

[Yuki Feng]

I have some squeaking noise sound from driver front ,tesla changed all joint ball parts,upper & lower control arms & sway bar links but not fixed the issue,now they said need replace the spring ever tesla cover the fee but techs look like know nothing about the car only want make more money on it ,